1999 Dodge Dakota Sport review from North America
"The sharpest looking, most expensive piece of junk I have ever seen!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
First day of ownership heating and the air conditioning system quit working.
Second week the front axle seal started leaking.
I have owned this truck for 24 months and it has been in the shop 20 times for repairs.
This is a list of some of them.
New catalytic converter.
New steering column.
New steering gear box.
New power steering pump.
New lines for the power steering system.
The engine management computer had to be reprogrammed to correct a severe spark knock problem. This took more than a year for Chrysler to repair.
At one point I had to go through arbitration because Chrysler's district manager in this area refused to allow the dealership to make any more repairs to the truck even though it is still under warranty.
When the catalytic converter went bad the truck was only about 6 months old.
It took 2 months for the dealership to get a new one. I called Chrysler and was told there were not any converters available for my truck. When I told them I would inform the EPA that I was driving a new truck with a bad converter and that they were refusing to repair it Chrysler suddenly found one!
I have had trouble with the truck not starting and the dealership still hasn't figured this problem out.
The district manager has told me if this were his truck he would not be satisfied with it but he wasn't going to do anything to help me out and he wasn't concerned if I ever purchased another Chrysler product or not.
General comments?
This truck is the most expensive and least dependable vehicle I have ever owned in my life.
I owned three different Ford trucks prior to purchasing this Dodge. The amount of ownership time on the Fords covers a 19 year period. The total number of times the Ford trucks were in the shop in 19 years is not much more than this Dodge has been in the shop in 2 years! This is not including routine maintenance. Only repairs for mechanical problems.
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| First year of ownership | 1999 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2001 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.9 V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 6/10 |
| Reliability marks | 1/10 |
| Comfort marks | 5/10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 1/10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 3/10 |
| Distance when acquired | 246 miles |
| Most recent distance | 21000 miles |
| Previous car | Ford Ranger |
| Date of Entry | 24th March, 2001 |